Linking machine



Nov. 1, 1932 C.P.KUEHNER LINKING MACHINE Filed April 17, 1950 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 BY z ATTORNEYS.

Nov. 1, 1932 c, P. KUEHNER 1 LINKING MACHINE Filed April 17. 1930 4 SheecsSheet 2 .95 nil Fl nil 98 my @a 12 iTuumTim IN VEN TOR.

ATTORNEYS.

4 Sheets-Shoot 3 c. P. KUEHNER LINKING momma Filed Apri-l 17, 1930 Nov. 1, 1932,.

R a m H m m I a A. o m Q 0 M 4 I I V U 0 w 7 vi/H Kw a 1 T I? I NM JQ Z W p 0 h f f a s r m W m NOV. 1, 1932. c p KUEHNER 1,885,116

' LINKING MACHINE Filed April 17. 1950 Y 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 jig/1 I 5% E w ,ii /i fll I INVENTOR 1 v Ka/ZQ? pizza/195W ,2 0 'ATTORNEYS.

Patented Nov. 1 I932 r I I UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE oimnnns nkUEnnER; nonrnrnovrnnncninnonn Islam I i:

i p nmxriio MACHINE: V J 'n ppliqati'on filed April-i7; 1930; "Serial mi. 445,o 07

This invention relates to a chain-machine "Fig. 9 is a, fragmentaltop plan view of for connecting elements together by'a link or the'feeding mechanism and carriage ith the the like; and has for its object to provide toplevers andibther parts removedj" Y a automatic mechanical mechanism forperma 7 F ig.*.10 is a top plan detail view of the.-

F nently linking elements which have .been oarr-iageff v V e I 7 r I55 temporarily connected together. I F gl i a'i gm n l' n therof;

A further object of the invention is to pro- Fig. 12 is a fragmental section on line vide a machine which will receive work in 712412 of Figure 10; I I i sheet metal form in which the' elements are F ig. 13 is a sectional view through the 1 y 11? definitely positioned one relative to the otheroperating plunger of the carriage and its and operate upon the same by inserting and operating pin mechanism; 1 closing a Wire link through adjacent elements "Fig. 14 is aisection through the mounting to flexibly connect them together. 7, 1 of the work feed mechanism on the bed plate A still further obj ect of this invention is "Fig 5:15 is a section through the work feed to provide amachine for forming and pass Inechanismatright angles to. thatshown in ing links through definitely positioned ele Figure '14; p I p a ments by rectilinear movements and avoiding j-Fig.z16 a sectional'view 'throughdiff; the twisting or rotary action of any of the 1' ferent parts of the workfeeding mechanism; l S forming mechanism. Fig-17 is a perspective view of the pawl A further ob'ect of this invention is to and reciproca-ting carriage on Whichit is cause the operation of the parts to act in suchlnounted for feeding the work into operating directions'and in such sequence that the wire position. p p link isprevented'from adhering to the fo'rm- This inventionisjrelated to my e e-pending ingtool upon its being'withdrawn from its application Serial No. 380,365, filed July '23,. shaping carriage. I I V 1929; and alludes to the placing of the'links With these'and other objects andadvan into the elements of the blank befo'relthe tageous features in view, the invention contemporary connectionsbetween thegemset sists of a novel arrangementof parts more -ting{felements are severed; andthe following fully disclosed in the detailed description is a detailed deseriptionof the present ems-"f so following i onjunction with the accom-i bodiment'o fj ai' 'machine' foraccomplishing panying drawings, and more'particularly set this'iadvantag'eou's result: forth in the appended claims.

I ilVith reference to 'the drawings 20 ds-l In the drawings: Y .ignates the bed plate of the machine upon-j Fig 1 i a t lanview of the machine"; which there is' suitably mounted a drive shaft.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the feeding 21 operated b y a hand wheel 24, or a belt, mechanism and carriage mechanism-of the not'sho'wn, engaging tight orlo'oseipulleys 22,} machine; 1 23,and upon this sh aftthereismountedin.

eis a seclional View th ght 'Q G spacedrelation a series-of suitably formed" i dmechanlsm 0f h machine; f camswhichoperate through levers, hereins; c M g- 4 1S a top P 7 of a Portlon of after more fully described in detail to cause H16 WQIk which is fedinto the machine; the successive sequences-of operations in-the v 5 is a top plan View of the Work after machine to be automaticall erformed I its elements have been linked'together; gd relation v Fig. 6 is 'airagmental detailshowing the e' 1 I f 4: position of the "wire linkbefore being e i c l 7 -1 Y1? 3 h 9e severed; 1 j p 111g mec aIl1S1I1 OIt:1eWOI r, a neec mg mec Fig; 7 is a similar view showinga difierent f for wlrerand mechamsm r 1 1 operating position of theparts; I g' the hnks e 3 lp y Fig. 8 is a similar view showing a more dd th n e e 9 he w k v N 50 advanced position of theparts; passedthrough the same and closed, all of l engaging either side to force it in one direction or the other, in which position it is firmly held by clamp screws 31 extending through suitable slots 32 in flanges on the body block and having threaded engagement with the supporting plate 25. In order to guide the body 29 in its lateral movement, a bar 33 is imbedded in the plate and slides in a slot 34 in the body to act as a keyway to permit lateral movement of the body but prevent movement thereof in a direction longitudinally of the work. A. slide 35 is reciprocatably mounted in a groove in the body block 29 to be moved forwardly by means of lever 36 pivoted as at 37 and operated by a cam 38,the same engaging the abutment 39 through an adjustable screw 40 which is secured in desired position in the arm 36 by meansof the set nut 41, the slide 35 being returned to its starting positionby means of tension spring 42 extending between the fixed hook 43 on the body and the pin 44 carried on the reciprocating ,slide 35. i v

A pawl 45 extends laterally from the slide 35 and is suitably pivotally mounted to drop by its ,own weight through a slot 46 into engagement with the'work, which is carriedthrough'the guideway 47 to feed the same forwardly in a step-by-step movement.

7 The slot 46 extends but a portion of the length of the stroke of the slide 35 and upon return movement of the pawl, the same rides ;up over a shelf 48 which may be adjusted with a reference to the reciprocating slide to vary the length of feed desired. Upon return movement of the reciprocating slide 37, the

friction block 49 which is forced against the r 8; work by means of the spring 50 prevents the work from being retracted from position. 7

The work thus passes beneath this friction clamp at all times.

' The wire 51 from which the link is formed is fed from a suitable source of supply by means of friction grip jaws 52 of a usual construct-ion operated through lever 53 pivoted as at 54 and actuated by means of the cam 55, which jaws after release are returned y a spring 56. acting cam to first cause the jaws to grip thewire and then advance the wire, after 1 which they are releasedto be returned for' an additional stroke. Before thegjaws 52 .:are returned, a friction block 57 is forced The cam is a double into contact with the wire 51 by means of the pin 58 which is actuated through adjustable stud 59 and lever 60 pivoted as at 61 by the cam 62. The block 57 is held in position by means of screw 63 and binding nut 64 which rests within a notch 65 and against shoulder 66 of the block 57 to pre vent its removaltherefrom. The wire 51 is fed againsta stop 67 which is adjustably held in the desired position to accurately determine the length of wire to be used for the link.

The carriage which also assists in forming the link consists of dovetail block 68 slidable on the'b'ed plate 20, between guides 69, whichdetermine a path for the reciprooatable movement of the carriage, thesame being actuated by means of cam 7 O acting directly upon the carriage through friction roller 71 and held in engagement with the cam by suitable springi72, shown in Figure 9. The carriage 68 is provided with a pair of guides 73 which are suitably held in posi tion by means of screws 74 and side plates 75. These guides are each formed with a central groove 7 6 and receive between them the narrowed portion 77 of a plunger 78, which serves. as a bottom former for the wire link.

An opening 79, see Figure 9, is shown in the bed plate in which there is located a pin 80 lies surrounded by bushing 81, both of which normally lie substantially flush with; thebed plate20. This pin is positioned directlybe neath the work at the point where the wire link is positioned in the work. The pin is forced upwardly by means of lever 82, which is suitably pivoted beneath the machine and operated by a cam 83 on the drive shaft, the lever abutting against the end 84 (Figure 13) e of the pin 80, which is returned to its lower position by means of a spring 85 acting between the collar 86 and the end 87 of the bushing 81.

In operation, the work 88 is advanced by its feeding mechanism above described ina path out of line with the path of the wire feed by the step-by-step operation, to a definite position. The wire 52 is fed against the stop 67, afterwhich it is clamped by the top former 89 descending to hold the end of the wire against space guides 73 by means of the op eration of the lever 90 acting through the adjustment 91 and slide 92 uponwhich the top former 89 is mounted. After the wire is thus bound, the severing tool 93 .is operated through lever 94, adjustment 95 and slide 96 to cut an end portion 97 from the length of wire and the severing tool is returned to its raised position by means of-a spring 98. V The top former 89 is then pressed downwardly through lever 99, adjustment 100 and slide, 92 and against return sprin lOl-to force the portion of the link-.97 downwardly into'the grooves 76 inthe guide 75 into open U-shape form, as shown inFigurefZ, against the bot- UTlink during this lateral movement.

carry the U or partially formed U-link to the riage returns toreceive another U-link, the

i work of changes in' arrangement may be made'within tom former or upper edge offthe' plunger 77. 7 After the top former 89 has "completedits stroke, the carriage moves the partially formed link from the plane of the path of the travel of the wire 52 laterally of the travel of the wire, and also laterally of the travel of the work'to a position beneath the work, which lateral movement occurs previous to the withdrawal of the top former from between the guides 73, thus preventing the with.- V drawal of the U-link from between the guides byreason of its adherence to the top former, the grooves in the guides serving to hold the When the carriage moves transversely to work, the plunger? 8 of the carriage is positioned directly over ithe pin 80 and this pin 80 isthen caused to rise through the action oflever 82, as'describedto lift the u-link upwardly and position it through openings 102 and 103 in the work 88,as shown in Figure 8, and is then heldin this pos tion by the plunger 77 and closed by bending the arms 104 of the link inwardly when engaged bythe closing tool 105 which is brought into contact with the wire'by lever 106 pivoted asat 107' and operated by means of cam'108 on'the drive shaft, after which the plunger 78 is permitted to descend to a position flush with the surface of the bed plate 20, and'the carwork and wire are :fed forwardly as'before, and a like cycleofoperations are performed, From the above, it will be apparent-that I have provided a machine which causes round wire linksto be inserted and closed through flat sheet stock elements held in definite-relation to one another automatically in endless series, after which the temporary marginal strips 109 may be severed'and the portions 110 used as prongs'to retain a gem within the set-. ting, all of which is accomplished without any rotary action of any of the tools to cause the the wire link to move about its own axis.

While I have described certain construction forms which embody the principles of my invention, it"is obvious that other desired 1 the spirit and the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

' Iclaim: V I

1. In a linking machine, mea'nsfor' guiding and feeding a blank ofsheet stock with spaced openings therein, means for forming a wire into U-sha'pe, and insertlng 1t through said openings, and means for bending the arms of the U-wire to complete the link'.

2. In a linking machine, means for-guiding and feeding a blank of sheet stock with spaced openings therein, means for forming a wire intovU-shape at a position spaced from the path-oftlie blank, means for transferring said .U tothe blank, and inserting it 4. In a linking machine, means for guiding I andfeeding elements to'be'linkediin' one direction, means for guiding and feeding a wireto be associated with the elementsin theopposite direction out. of line with but substantially parallel to the-movement of the elements, and a carriage for transferring a portion of said wire laterallytova position beneath saidelements. a

5, In a linking machine, ing and feeding elements tobe linked in one direction, means for'guiding andfeedinga wire to be-associated with the elementsiin the opposite direction, means for severinga portion from the wire, and a carriage for assisting in formlng and; transferring the severed portion .of thew-ire to a position be neath the elements.

6. In a linking machine, means-for guid means for guid ing and feeding elements having spaced "openings, means for guiding and feeding a ,W re to be associated WltlIfthQ elements, 7 means for'sever ng a port on of the wire,*a

carriage, 'a;former cooperating with said carriage to formsa'id severe'dportion into an open 'U shape link, means fortransferring said carriage to position said U-linkin said spaced openings, and means for closing the armsof the U-link into completed form r 7. In a linkingmachine, means for guid ing and feeding elements having spaced openings, means for guiding and feeding a wire to be associated with the elements, means for severing'a portion of the wire, a carriage having a plunger therein, a former cooperating with said carriage to form said severed portion into an-open U-shape link,

means for operating said plunger to pass the arms of the U-link through the spaced openings, and means for closing the arms of the U-link into completed form.-

'8. In a linking machine, ,a bed plate 0 'means for feeding elements having spaced openings, means for feeding linking wire, a severing tool, means for hold ng said wlre grooved guides to engage the underi sideflof" I said wire, means to operate said former subsequent'to the severing'of said wireto during the 'operatingof said severing tool force the same downwardly between said guides and cause th ejwireto, become ufshape the plunger upwardly to position the link in I the spaced openings, a closing tool positioned .above the elements, and means for operating .the closing tool subsequent to the positioning of the link in the spaced openings to close the same with its ends in abutting relation.

9. In a linking machine, a bed plate, means for feeding elements to be linked comprising -a base plate, a stud for clamping said base plate in 'adjustedposition thereon, a body portion having a groove forming a slideway to guide the work therein, a reciprocating feed bar, a pawl mounted thereon for engagement with the elements to advance the same, and a friction clamp to hold the elements during the return of the pawl for an additional gripping bite, meansfor feeding the linking wire comprising a friction jaw for gripping and advancing the same, a stop to limit the advance movement, and a friction jaw to hold the-wire during the return of the gripping jaws for again advancing the wire, a severing tool, means for holding said wire during the operating of said'severing tool comprisinga I former for engaglng the upper side of said wire and a carriage'slidable on said bed plate and provided with spaced grooved guides to engage the under side of said wire, means to operate said former subsequent tothe seven ing of said wire to force the same downward-'- ly between said guide and cause the wireto become U-shape and positioned in said groove, means for moving said carriage and the U-link formed therein to a position beneath said elements, and over a pin reciprocatably mounted in the bed plate, a plunger slidably mounted in said carriage and serving, as a bottom shaper for the iJ-link, said plunger being located over said pin when the carriage is beneath the elements, means for causing the pin to force the plunger upwardly to position the link in the spaced openings, a closing tool positioned above the elements, and means for operating the'closing tool subsequent to the positioning of the link in the spacedjopenings to close the same with its ends in abutting relation.

10. In a linking machine, means for guiding and feedinga blank of sheet stock with spaced openings therein, means for forming a wire intoU-shape at a position spaced from the path of'the blank, means for transferring said U wire to a position beneath the blank stock and inserting it through said openin and means for bending the arms of the U Wire to complete the link.

' 11. In a linking machine, means for guiding and feeding a blank of sheet stock with spaced openings therein, means for forming a-wire into U shape at a position spaced from the path of the blank stock, means including a carriage for transferring said U wire to the blank stock and inserting it through said openings and' means for bending the arms of the U wire to complete the link.

12. In a linking machine, means for guiding and feeding a blank of sheet stock with spaced openings therein, means for forming a wire into L5 shape at a position spaced from the path of the blank, means including a carriage for transferring said U wire to a position beneath the blank stock and inserting it through said openings and means for bending the arms of the U wire to complete the link. 3 13. In a linking machine means for feeding elements having spaced openings therein, a carriage provided with formingtool memhere, means for feeding a wire adjacent said forming members, means cooperating with said forming tool members to sh ape said wire into a partially formed link, means for movsaid carriage and partially formed link therein adjacent said elements, means'for inserting a portion of said partially formed ink through said spaced openings and means for closing said partially formed link into completed form.

I 14. In a linking machine, means for guiding and feeding a blank of sheet stock with spaced openings therein, a carriage provided with forming tool elements, means for feeding a wire adjacent said forming elements, means cooperating with saidforming tool elements toshape said wire into L5 shape, means for moving said carriage and U shaped wire therein adjacent said elements to be linked, means for inserting a portion of said U shaped wire through said spaced openings and means for acting on the U shaped wire to secure it in place.

15. In a linking machine, a carriage provided with forming tool elements, means for feeding a wire adjacent said forming elements, means cooperating with said forming tool elements to shape said wire into a partially formed link, means for feeding a blank having spaced openings therein at a position spaced from the path of the wire,'means for moving said carriage and partially formed link therein acent said blank having spaced openings therein, means for inserting a portion of said partially formed link through said spaced openings and means for closing said partially formed link into completed. form.

1G. In a linking machine, means for feeding a blank having spaced openings therein to be linked, a slidably mounted carriage provided with forming tool elements, means for feeding a wire adjacent said forming tool ele ments, means cooperating with said forming tool elements to shape said wire into a partially formed link, means for moving said carriage and partially formed links therein to a position adjacent said blank to be linked, means for inserting said partially formed link through said spaced openings, and means for closing said partially formed'link into completed form 17. In a linklng machine, means for feed- I ing a blank having spaced openings therein to be linked, a slidably mounted carriage provided with forming tool elements, and a plunger therein, means for feeding a wire adjacent said forming tool elements, means co-' operating with said-forming tool elements to shape said wire into a partially formed link, means for moving said carriage and partially formed link therein to a position adjacent said blank to be linked, means cooperating with said plunger for inserting said partially" formed link through said spaced openings, and means for closing said partially formed link into completed form.

18. In a linking machine, means for feeding a blank having spaced openings therein, a carriage provided with forming tool elements, means for feeding a wire adjacent said forming elements, means cooperating with said forming tool elements to shape said wire into a partially formed link, means for mov- 7 ing said carriage and partially formed link therein to a position adjacent said blank having spaced openings therein, means including the forming elements to retain said partially formed link in proper position in said carriage during-the moving thereof, means for inserting a portion of said partially formed link through said spaced openings and means for closing said partially formed link into completed form.

19. A machine comprising a movable carria-ge provided with forming tool elements, means for feeding blank stock adjacent said forming tool elements, means cooperating with said forming tool elements to form said blank stock into a partially formed unit, means for feeding ablank having spaced openings therein to a positionspaced from the path of movement of the blank stock, means for moving said carriage and partially formed unit therein to a position adjacent said blank having spaced openings, means for inserting a portion of said unit through said spaced openings and means acting on said unit to secure it in place.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

CHARLES P. KUEHNER. 

